Psychological safety is something I have often talked about but have found difficult to find in my own work. There’s a lot of reasons for this. In a previous life, I couldn’t talk about my day to day work and life. As I have gotten further away from that time, It has gotten easier to adjust to being more transparent. With a permanent nerve injury, constant pain, and dealing with the VA it’s often a lot for an employer to consume in one fell swoop. This has led me to slowly open the floodgates in the past. As I approached the date of a VA appointment for injections on July 25th, I realized that being 100% remote I needed to sit down with my boss. I needed to explain all the details of my VA disability, the rating, treatments, etc. for her. I cobbled together some notes to keep myself on track and some visual aids. To assist in understanding the scope of my injuries. This is the first time I’ve been able to gather all this data in one place.

I was nervous. In the past, people have found my story hard to comprehend because “you seem so normal” or “you don’t look like you’re in pain” or “you look fine”. But, it’s safe to say most people have never seen me when I wasn’t in pain (it’s been 15 years since I got hurt). I gave my narrative about how I got hurt, how long it took to get diagnosed, all the treatments tried in the past, how much of a problem it is working with the VA, and my current regimen. My boss listened intently, asked some simple questions for color, then paused to respond. She stated that she was amazed at how well I made it look like I was doing despite having these issues. She said that we’ll get through this. She was adamant that I take it easy to get the full benefit of the injections. She even told me to skip meetings (I didn’t but I probably should have).

I’ve never felt more comfortable telling an employer, even a person for that matter, all the things that are going on with me. I know that my boss has my back. She might not understand every nuanced detail but she is willing to learn without prying. She’s willing to ask how things are going. To make sure I’m mentally ready to tackle the things we’re trying to take on. She’s there if I need her. I’ve never felt more secure in a position than I do right now. Psychological safety matters a lot. I finally have it in my work life. For that, I am truly thankful.

What almost everyone misunderstands about product managers: “PMs have diverse backgrounds, murky responsibilities, and role definitions that vary widely across companies. They typically sit at the intersection of development (design and engineering) and go-to-market-focused departments (sales and marketing). The research opportunities, guide strategy, and help take features from idea to launch.”

Process

Cisco plans to acquire cybersecurity firm Duo Security for $2.35 billion: Seth Vargo sums up this news perfectly, “While I’m excited for the humans involved in the Duo acquisition, I’m deeply concerned about what this means for the security space. A lot of companies have built their security postures around Duo, and Cisco has allowed foreign governments to install backdoors.” I immediately crossed Duo off the list of places I’d be willing to work when I saw the announcement (which sucks because they’re local).

Tweet of the Week

you shouldn't need mothers or sisters or wives or daughters to understand that women are people. the number of tweets i get saying "as a father/husband i appreciate you educating me". you shouldn't need me. educate yourself. respect all women, not just the ones in your life.

whoami

I'm Chris Short, 20+ veteran of the IT industry and 11 year veteran of the US Air Force. I help people and companies embrace DevOps practices and tools through writing and public speaking. I am a staunch advocate for transparency and open source solutions to problems.